


Playing The Long Game

by Eggtachi



Category: Naruto
Genre: Athlete Shisui, M/M, Nerd Itachi, modern!AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-06
Updated: 2021-01-06
Packaged: 2021-03-17 04:42:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28594167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eggtachi/pseuds/Eggtachi
Summary: Shisui is the captain and star of the varsity football (soccer) team, and he's got his eye on a certain someone. That someone is the champion of the chess club, Itachi. How can Shisui win over a well known genius when he himself tries so hard to just be average off the field?
Relationships: Uchiha Itachi & Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Itachi/Uchiha Shisui
Comments: 9
Kudos: 30





	Playing The Long Game

Shisui glanced up as the rolling echoes of thunder funneled through the campus walkways, only to be lost to the open air of the soccer field where he stood. The gentle breeze brought with it the smell of fresh rain as well as a primal awareness of the calm before the storm.

"Don't tell me you intend on practicing, Captain." He waited for Kotetsu to join him instead of taking his eyes off the clouds. His scoff of mock offense was nearly lost in the encroaching rumble.

"Even I'm not that insane.," He turned, giving his friend his full attention., "I'm just here to make sure nobody shows up, that's all."

"That's considerate and all but totally unnecessary. I promise you nobody is going to show up to practice in this weather. Well, except you." Kotetsu teased. Shisui puffed out his cheeks in a pout that earned him little more than a roll of the eyes.

"Hey now. That's not nice. You showed up, didn't you?" Shisui accused, a smile tugging at his lips.

"Izumo figured you would be out here and sent me to get you." Kotetsu just shrugged, shoving his hands into his pockets and kicking a small rock.

"Really...he sent you." Shisui raised a brow. Kotetsu wasn't exactly known for his productivity and dedication to tasks.

"Well, the guys are all in the lounge and he didn't trust me to be in charge of going to the liquor store."

"Hah! Fair enough." Shisui laughed, dodging the playful jab aimed at his shoulder.

"Come on, let's head back before it rains." Kotetsu beckoned to him but Shisui shook his head

"Actually, I have something important to do—I'll join you guys next time. Sorry, senpai."

"What, you got a hot date?"

"I might." A snicker slipped through despite his best effort to hide it. Kotetsu let out a laugh of his own and ruffled his hair.

"Hey!"

"Well I'll leave you to your 'date' then. Have fun, I'll let the guys know you're busy," he teased, accentuating "date" with air quotes to a sarcastic degree. Kotetsu beat a rather hasty retreat towards the lounge, and Shisui didn't bother to watch him, instead making his way towards the science building.

The hinges on the glass door creaked as they opened, and it wasn't yet late enough in the year for the sound of the glowing fluorescent lights in the main hallways to be drowned out by air conditioning units. The quiet buzz followed him through the halls and up the stair wells to the third floor, where he was greeted by a flash of light and a roar that he could feel through the reinforced panes. The muted drone of rain beating against the concrete roof joined the hum of the lights in a faded white noise that could almost be described as pleasant, tainted only by the muffled voices of students behind closed doors. Various clubs met here, not that he ever bothered to learn what they all were. Though he did know of one.

The room could have been mistaken for empty were it not for the light coming from underneath the door. The silence gripped Shisui’s own throat and tension from an unknown source pulled at his hand as he reached for the handle. He didn't let himself hesitate long enough for doubt to creep into his mind, and he opened the door to the room. Seven students looked up to see who had broken their silence, each showing a varying degree of skepticism to the presence of a star athlete at their door. Six of them sat in pairs while the seventh sat alone, reading something. 

Shisui’s entrance was given all of three seconds of recognition before six heads turned back to the checkered boards and monochromatic pieces laid out in intricate patterns between each pair. But the seventh continued to observe him; a bewildered expression almost perfectly masked by a disinterested facade. Shisui watched him stand.

"Hello...my name is Uchiha Itachi. I am the captain of the chess team...how may I help you?" The uncertainty hidden in the formal greeting told him everything he needed to know. This would be just as entertaining as he had hoped.

"Well, the field isn't exactly an option today, so I figured I'd come here. I'd like to have a match with you if that's alright." He cracked a smile; he wasn't going to force it if Itachi said no, but he highly doubted he would decline.

"...I don't see why not. Please close the door fully behind you," Itachi instructed as he sat back down. Shisui nodded, trying to calm the rush of giddy excitement that coursed through his body without making him suspicious. He did his best not to let the chair scrape on the floor and only partially failed in the attempt.

"Do you know how to play?" Itachi set his book aside, even upside down Shisui could read “HMS Bounty” on the cover. There were other words, but they were too small to read.

"Oh yeah, I know how the pieces move." Shisui’s grin stretched from ear to ear

"I see..." His reply apparently did little to inspire Itachi's confidence in his abilities, and probably his intelligence as well, but that only worked to his benefit. Itachi was the cautious type, but he never put up more defense than what made him feel safe. It saved mental resources for the times he needed it, but as a result, people he didn't deem a possible threat had far fewer walls to break through.

"You move first." Itachi gestured for him to make a move. But he had made his first move. In fact, they were already several turns into a game only one of them was aware of; at least for now.

Shisui kept his eyes on Itachi as picked up the pawn with a gentle touch, and he made a point of maneuvering it to its new position in one, fluid motion. His slender fingers curled away from it in a fashion that mimicked a caress. Itachi's eyes followed his hand, lingering a moment even after he let go of the piece. But he refocused, considering the board. Itachi never wanted to hurt people, and that went for hurting their pride and their spirit too. He had no doubt the hesitation stemmed from an attempt to "dumb it down" to the level of skill he perceived him to be. He was selfless like that.

Itachi took his turn, still more focused on the board than him. Shisui let his hand hover over the pieces a moment, as though he were considering his options, and he twitched his fingers ever so slightly as he moved to keep Itachi’s attention where he wanted it. Once again he made a point of keeping his gestures fluid as he picked up the chosen piece, this time his bishop, and set it down where he wanted it. His move was far from pro but not totally rookie either, just skilled enough to get him thinking. He couldn't rush into it. He had to wait until Itachi realized it for himself. 

Shisui played the long game; he could wait.

In truth, Shisui had been watching him since his late teens. Family events brought them within decent proximity multiple times each year. Itachi on the other hand never paid him much notice beyond the greetings required by social norms. He still wasn't entirely sure how he was related to Itachi. They were cousins of some sort, so the tree had to join up somewhere. He supposed it didn't matter; his love had already crossed into more forbidden territory. Itachi had matured well. The once lanky, scrawny figure had grown into a lithe beauty. He could still remember when Itachi’s little hands had to hold both sides of a book as he kept himself entertained in the long social hours the adults spent talking after meals. Even back then concentration aged his face while the rest of him seemed to lag behind.

Itachi wasn't the most emotive person, so each and every expression Shisui could catch, he burned into his memory. Nobody brought out his emotions like his baby brother, Sasuke. He'd almost been taken aback when he first saw such a tender smile on his face. Jealousy wasn't a pretty thing, but he couldn't help it. He didn't resent the boy or anything; Sasuke was a good kid. Shisui just wanted what he had. A clap of thunder and flickering lights brought him back to the present.

"Do you think the power is gonna go out?" One of the other students peered up at the lights, fidgeting in his seat like he expected the roof to cave in.

"There were warnings of power outages. Calm down, we will go to the storm shelter if the need arises." Itachi's voice carried through the room despite his quiet tone, comfort hitching a ride off the back of his authority. The anxious student settled, at least for now. Itachi had made his move, and Shisui could see the way his eyes wandered around the board, his attention slowly shifting.

Shisui made his move, going back to the rookie tactics, but this time he didn't take his hand off the piece. He let it linger, stroking the molded plastic with his thumb just slightly and humming. Itachi's eyes locked onto his hand, and he lifted it off the piece, going high enough to put his face into his peripheral. For a split second their eyes met and he smiled. Not yet. Soon, but not yet. He needed Itachi's full attention, full awareness.

There was a kind of hesitation in the way Itachi placed his next piece. Sometimes rookies got lucky and made a good play even without fully knowing the game. They could accidentally play someone more experienced to a stalemate if they got lucky enough. But the seeds of uncertainty had been sewn into the back of Itachi’s mind. So now Itachi was testing the waters, creating a setup that would take more than one move to complete. A more experienced player would notice the setup, but a rookie wouldn't think about their opponent's future moves.

As much as Shisui wanted to show that he knew what he was doing, it would ruin the real game. Besides, it was far more fun to do him one better anyway. So he ignored the setup in favor of creating his own, watching the gears in Itachi’s head turn while narrowed eyes flit about the pieces. One day he would tell him how cute his confusion looked, but that day was not today.

Itachi continued his own setup, though the hesitation in his movements lingered, becoming more pronounced with each passing moment. Just a little more; just a little further. He was almost there. His next move would be the deciding factor. Shisui kept his eyes locked onto Itachi’s head as he moved his piece, still ignoring his cousin's set up in favor of completing his own. It wasn't the best play he’d ever made, but that wasn't the point. The odds of a rookie fumbling each piece into position through sheer dumb luck were quite low. Itachi finally looked into his eyes as he reached for his own piece.

Words were redundant now. The intensity of his gaze and the sly smile that he finally allowed to grace his lips told Itachi just how much he really knew. Fluster overpowered Itachi’s self control enough to dust his cheeks a light pink. Wide-eyed and frozen, he could almost feel his cousin's own perception of the world collapsing down around them until only they remained, suspended in time and space with nothing but each other. With his composure compromised it was easy to see his expressions. He was a wild animal caught in the headlights. He watched confusion turn to panic only to die down again into a mix of curiosity and embarrassment. Guilt tugged at his heart watching his cousin struggle with himself, trying to regain control, but the view was priceless.

The few seconds of exchange felt far longer, but with the facade gone Itachi would finally give him a challenge. He felt giddy; a chance to interact with his equal and his crush didn't exactly present itself every day. Although his rookie facade had put him at something of a disadvantage he didn't care. That said Itachi was still shaken and distracted so it probably balanced out in the end. Probably.

Itachi barely looked at the board now. He was busy observing Shisui, and Shisui let himself revel in the attention just a bit. His game wasn't over yet. It had only just begun. And now that Itachi knew he was playing, it made it all the more fun. He let his own attention be divided between his cousin and the board now. As much as he wanted to keep that intensity going, it would only overwhelm the poor kid. Instead he let Itachi have the reins for a bit. If he wanted to gain Itachi’s trust he had to show he was willing to give his own trust to him in return.

Chess was one of his favorite board games as a kid, but he couldn't remember the last time he had actually played like this. He had to think several steps ahead, anticipate Itachi's plays, and adjust accordingly when he strayed from his predictions. The board grew more and more complex, pieces captured sat to the side, and even when his king lay in a check-mate, he decided it was the best game of chess he had ever played. The twenty or so minutes he had been in the room provided more mental exercise for him than the past ten or so years combined, and he felt a kind of freedom he'd long forgotten.

"Good game." He stretched and looked out the window. The rain was still beating down, but the thunder was a bit quieter now than when he'd arrived.

"Indeed..." There was a numbness in his tone, though he still sounded contemplative and confused. Shisui chuckled and gathered up the pieces, placing them back on the board.

"Are you wanting a rematch?" Itachi’s voice held muted tones of hope.

"Are you?" Shisui put the ball back in Itachi’s court. His pleased expression clearly set something off in Itachi, something that sent sparks of anticipation flickering to life.

"...if you would not mind staying a while longer, I would like to play another match with you." Hesitation contained excitement under the more refined facade, but his eyes betrayed the competitive fire Shisui had started in him blazing away.

"Then let's play." Shisui could hardly wait, his itch for a challenge finally being satisfied. Finally an equal.

"Your move."

**Author's Note:**

> I swear this started as a drabble but uh...yeah...here we are. More coming hopefully soon as my friends lovingly bully to finish something I started for once. (Love you guys!)


End file.
